Fireproof construction



' Feb; 19,1929. 1,702,706

- K. R. SCHUSTER FIREPROOF CONSTRUCTION Filed April 14, 1926 2Sheets-Sheet l I x v WyTOR ATTORNEY Feb. 19, 1929. 1,702,706 K. R.SCHUSTER FIREPROOF CONSTRUCTION Filed April 14, 1925 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 7ENTOR I ATTORNEY Patented Feb. 1.9, 1929.

UNITED STATES KARL njscnus'rnn, OF HOPATCONG, NEW JERSEY.

FIREPROOF CONSTRUCTION.

Application filed April 14, 1926.

This invention is a fire proof construction, pertaining moreparticularly to a floor plate or slab, composed in part of concrete andin part of tile blocks, or composed'wholly of concrete; but the tileused herein is adapted for use generally as a facing for ceilings,concrete beams, Walls and other surfaces.

A flat tile of my invention possesses marked utility when used to form afacing or an under surface of a ceiling constituted by a floor plate orslab; and its utility is the more apparent in floor slabs composed in.part of tile blocks and in part of concrete ribs, the latter beingreinforced by metal rods or bars, said reinforced concrete ribsextending in two directions and said ribs co-operating with the tileblocks to produce a floor slab having the desired. load-carryingcapacity and being capable of installation rapidly, economically andbyunskilled labor. Y

The invention consists in a tile of novel form, and a floor slab theunder surface or ceiling of which is composed in whole or i pa rt ofsaid tile.

In a preferred form, the flat tile is provided with a key rib positionedon one face thereof intermediate the edges and extending, preferably, inthe direction of the length of said tile. The tiles are adapted to bepositioned atthe under surface of afloorslab, or at the surface of agirder or beamso asto form, in whole or in part, a facing for said slab,beam or girder. Inthis connection, the ribs on the facesof the tilesperform at-least three important functions; first, by embeddingthe ribsin the concrete material, they act askeys for retaining the tilesimmovably in position; second, the ribs serve the function of spacersfor the reinforcing metal bars or rodsso as to leave appreciableintervals between the tiles and said bars or rods, whereby the con--crete material. is adapted to fill said spaces orintervals in order-toenvelop the rods or bars and to sccurea perfect bond between the metalrods or bars and'the facing tiles, and. third, the tilcsbeing composedof clay material, they are rather fragile, but the tendency to break ordisintegrate due to transportation and handling is overcome, at least toa substantial extent, by the added strength imparted to the flat tile bythepresence of the longitudinal key rib integral with said tile.

For economy of manufacture, itis prelcrred to produce a number of theribbed tiles Serial No. 101,875.

in the form of hollowblocks provided with lines of weakness or cleavage,whereby (the .blocks may be handled and shipped with the building.

Animpor-tant part of the invention, from one aspect thereof, is theemployment ofthe ribbed tiles in'a floor slab composed of tile blocksand of reinforced concrete. Thispart of the invention comprises tileblocks and the flat ribbed tiles assembled in -.rows in two directions,said ribbed tiles being positioned at the bottom of the resulting slabandintermediate the tile blocks sofas to spacethe latter in twodirections,.the entire under face of the resulting slab being composed.of the tile blocks and the flat tiles, so asto result .in a relativelysmooth-tile surface at the ceiling, which surface is comparatively freefrom irregularities which followifromqthe exposure of the concretematerial on the nndersurface of the floor slab. Theribs onithe flattiles extend upwardly in thespaces between the tile blocks, and ontheseribs are laidthe'bars or rods to form the steel reinforcement for theconcrete ribs. The tile blocks, the fiat tiles and the steel rods orbars areassembled in a dry condition and by unskilled labor, andsubsequentlythe concrete material, in a plastic condition, is depositedin the spaces between the tile blocks, thus enabling the-floor slab tobe installed quickly and by the. services of unskilled laborers,wherebyeconomylof construction is secured.

My flat ribbed tiles are available, also, in

the construction of-flatslabs composed oflreinforced concrete, saidtilesforming a smooth surface at the under side of thcfslab or theceiling,-but lllgbOtll formsof slab, i.-.e., tile block and concreteconstruction, and reinforced concrete, the'fiat -tiles performimporbeapplied to good advantage, and-the ribs of the tilesperform-thefunctionof keys,for the reason that they are embedded in thecon crcte; and thus fasten i thee tiles I mn'mv ably in position, saidribs per forming the function of imparting strength to the tiles inorder to minimize breakage thereof.

Other features of the invention and the advantages thereof will appearfrom the fol lowing detailed description.

In the drawings,

Figure 1 is a plan view showing the tile blocks and flat tiles as theyappear when assembled upon a suitable support, form, or centering, andillustrating the metal reinforcing rods or bars extending in twodirections and positioned within the channels between said tile blocks.

Figure 2 is a verti :al cross section through a flat floor slab in adirection ti'ansversely with respect to the cells or longitudinalpassages within said tile bloc ts, the concrete material covering thetile blocks to a suitable depth over the top thereof.

Figure 8 is a vertical section taken at right angles to Figure 2 and ina direction longitudinally with respect to the cells or spaces in thetile blocks,

Figure t is a section similar to Figure 2, wherein deeper tile blocksare employed the construction of the floor slab, the top layer of theconcrete material being oi'nitted.

Figure 5 is a section at right angles to Figure 4, and in a directionsimilar to Fl ure 3.

Figure 6 is a perspective view of a tile block provided with lines ofcleavage, whereby the block may be broken to produce imlividual flattiles in accordance with this invention.

Figure 7 is a perspective view of a preferred form of. the breakabletile block.

Figure 8 is a vertical section through a reinforced concrete floor slaband a part of the girder or beam thereof, illustrating the mode of usingmy flat tiles as a facing for the concrete slab.

Figure 9 is an inverted or bottom plan view of the concrete slabillustrating}; the arrang ment of the flat tiles forming the ceilingsurface.

The floor slab illustrated in Figures 1, f2 and 3 is composed of tileblocks and reinforced concrete. The tile blocks A are ce1lu lar and openat their ends, each block being composed of clay which is run throughthe die of a clay machine so as to be formed with internal webs a, afterwhich the clay material. is cut at suitable intervals and the formedmaterial subsequently baked or burned in a kiln. The blocks may be ofany suitable size and din'iensions, and, preferably, said blocks arefree from flanges at their sides or ends, the cells or longitudinalpassages Z) within. each block being open at the respective ends of saidblock.

An essential feature of this invention consists of a flat tile or a tileslab, B, the same being provided with a rib or web C. The tile 13 is ofa determined length, width, and thickness, one face of the tile beingadapted to have applied thereto the concrete material which enters intothe construction of the floor slab. .The rib C extends or protrudes fromthat surface of the tile or tile slab against which the concrete isapplied. As shown, the rib C extends the full length of the tile orslab, and it is positioned intermediate the side edges of said tile orslab. The rib performs several important functions, as will presentlyappear; but one function. of the rib is that it adds strength to thetile or slab, so as to minimize breakage thereof when handling said tileor in shipping it.

When it is desired to install the tile block and concrete floor slab,the usual centering, form, or support is placed in position, and theblocks A and slabs B are assembled, as in Figure 1. The blocks areplaced in rows extending in two directions, and the tiles or slabs B arepositioned between the sides and the ends of the blocks, and in Contacttherewith at the bottom portion of the same, for the purpose of spacingthe blocks in ainanner for the rows to be spaced or separated by thetiles B which thus act as spacers for the individual blocks. It ispreferred to employ slabsequal in length to the blocks. Thus, in layinga row of blocks the workman places one block in position, then places afiat tile or slab in contact with an end portion of the block, thesecond block is placed in position and another slab is placed in contactwith the end of the block, and so on, until the desired number of blocksin the first row shall have been installed. The next step consists inplacing the tiles 0r slabs along the sides of the blocks composing thefirst row, the row of slabs or tiles being in contact with the slabs andblocks of the first row, and said row of tiles are in contact with eachother at their ends. The blocks and tiles required to form the secondrows are now installed in the manner described, after which a second rowof tiles or slabs in endwise abutting order is placed next to the secondrod of tiles, and so on throughout the operation until the desired areais covered by the blocks and by the tiles. It will be observed that byinterposing the tiles between the blocks in the manner described, saidtiles operate to space the blocks in two directions, and as a result ofthis mode of assembling the blocks and tiles two series of channels willbe produced, the channels of one series extending in. one directionbetween the open ends of the blocks, and the channels of the otherseries extending between the blocks at the closed sides thereof, thechannels of one series intersecting with the channels of the otherseries. These channels receive the metal bars or rods D, E, the rods Dextending in one direction between the ends of the tiles in the rows,and the rods E extending in another direction between the closed sidesof the tiles forming the rows. The rods E are shown as contacting IOUwith the top edges of the ribs C on the flat tiles, whereas TOCS D restupon the rods E which they cross, the two series of'rods thusintersecting and the rods of one series contacting with those of theother series.

Having installed the blocks, slabs and metal rods, the concrete materialis deposited thereon. The material enters the channels formed by theco-operating slabs and blocks so as to result in the formation ofconcrete ribs, which ribs extend in two directions, so that the ribswill intersect with each other at the several corners of the tiles inthe rows. The concrete materialfills the spaces between the blocks atthe sides and at the ends thereof, thus resulting in concrete ribs F, G,see Figures 2 and 3. As shown, the concrete is deposited to a suitabledepth over the tops of the tile blocks, thus forming a concrete slab F,the latter adding materially to the strength of the resulting floor slabwhere comparatively shallow tile blocks are used.

By reference to Figures 2 and 3, it will be noted that the ribs G of theflattilcs or slabs extend upwardly into the channels between the blocks,and thus said ribs C are embeddedinto the ribs F, G, formed by theconcrete n iat-eria-l, whereby said ribs C anchor the-flat tiles orslabsfir nly-in position. Furthermore, the rods E where they cross the slabsor tiles are in contact with the upper edges of ribs C, and the rods orbars D cross the rods or bars E. By thus assembling the rods for contactwith the ribs, said rods D, as well as the rods E, are spaced withrespect to the upper surfaces of the tiles, thus providing openings ofappreciable depth between the rods and the upper faces of the tiles,which spaces are filled with concrete material. The concrete materialthus acts as a bond for uniting the reinforcing bars or rods and theflat slabs or tiles, said concrete material thoroughly encasing themetallic bars or rods.

When the concrete material is deposited into the space between'the openends of the tiles to forn'i the ribs G, said material is in a plasticcondition, and it is free to enter the longitudinal cells or passages 72of said tiles, the degree of entry of the plastic material into the openended tile blocks being determined by the angle of repose of saidmaterial and by the resistance which said material. encounters due tofrictional contact with'the walls of the cells, whereby the concretematerial of the ribs G form keys g for the purpose of securing aninterlocking connection between the open ended tile blocks and theconcrete ribs.

It will be observed that the entire under surface of the floor slab iscomposed of the tile blocks A. and the flat tiles or slabs B, the latterbeing provided with upstanding ribs which are embedded in the concreteribs for the purpose of anchoring the flat tiles to said concrete. Theceiling of the floor slab is thus composed entirely of tile material,affording a comparatively smooth surface whereon one or more coats ofplaster may be applied to good advantage; in this particular, the floorslab of-my invention is distinguished from prior structures composed oftile blocks and concrete, wherein. the concrete ribs are e.\:- posed atthe under or ceiling surface of the slab, which concrete ribs present amore or less irregular or rough outline, so that it is diiiicultto applythe plaster coat in a way to secure a desirable smoothfinish. Suchobjection is, however, overcome by my construction, for the reason thatthe tile material of the bloc is and the slabs are comparatively smooth,so that the plaster coat can be app'liedevenly and uniformly to secure adesired finish. Furthermore, the employment of the slabs or flat tilesserves at least two important functions; first, they operate to spacethe tiles in rows extending in two directions, and, second, theirpresence at the bottom of the tileblocks and in contact therewithaffords surfaces upon which the plastic concrete material is deposited,thus precludsaid plastic concrete materal from flowing to the bottom orceilingsurface of the floor slab.

The embodiment of the invention, disclosed in Figures l and 5, isidentical with the construction in Figures 1, 2 and 3, except that thetile blocks are somewhat higher, or of increased vertical dimensions,and, further, the top slab of concrete over the tile block is omitted;butotherwise the floor slab of Figures 4 and 5 is installed andconstructed as hereinbefore described in connection with Figures 1, 2and 3. As shown, the tile blocks A of Figures 4 and 5 are provided withrows of three cells one above the other; said tile blocks A of Figures 4and 5 are assembled concurrently with, and are spaced by, the flat tilesor slabs B, each hav ing the rib C; the reinforcing metal bars D, E, arepositioned in the channels be tween the rows of tile blocks, so thatsaid bars will cross or intersect and will. be spaced relatively to theflat tiles by the ribs of the latter, and the concrete material fillsthe channels between the tile blocks and encases the bars D, E, and italso keys or locks the open ended tile blocks with the resultingconcrete ribs, all as hereinbefore set forth.

It is understood that the flat slabs or tiles provided with the ribs maybe made in. any usual Way and shape, transported or handled by anysuitable method; but as such fiat slabs are composed of baked claymaterial, it is apparent that considerable breakage is liable to occurduring shipment and handling thereof. Accordingly, in Figures 6 and 7, Ihave shown a multiple construction of the tiles or slabs, the same beingembodied in the form of a hollow block, I, in Figure 6, and

block I, in Figure 7, each block being provided with longitudinal linesof cleavage i. As shown in Figures 6 and 7, the hollow block is composedof clay material which is run through a suitable die and is cut intosuitable lengths, after which the clay material is burned or baked in akiln in the ordinary way. The block is composed of a top wall, a bottomwall and two side walls, and the interior of the block is formed withwebs i. Each web is formed with a line of cleavage j, and the lines ofcleavage z, j, are so positioned on the walls and the webs that when theblock I or I is broken along the lines of cleavage, there results anumber of flat tiles or slabs, each slab being provided with one or moreof the longitudinal ribs extending upwardly or outwardly from that facethereof against which the cement material is to be applied when settingthe tiles or slabs along with the other blocks in the operation ofinstalling the floor slab.

The floor slabs heretofore described are composed in part of tileblocks, tile slabs, and in part of reinforced concrete material; but inFigure 8 there is illustrated an all concrete reinforced construction,the under or ceiling surface of which is formed by the use of flat slabsor tiles B constructed in accordance with this invention. -The concreteslab J is provided with the metal rods or reinforcements D arranged orassembled in a suitable way, said rods being embedded or encased withinthe concrete material. The tiles B are assembled in any desired order,one method of assemblage being illustrated in Figure 9, wherein eachtile is lapped at its edge portions by other tiles on both. the sideedges and end edges thereof. The tiles may be laid in the herring boneorder illustrated, or they may be assembled in any other appropriate ordesired manner. The tiles form the bottom or under surface of the floorslab, as in Figure 8, the ribs C extending upwardly from said tiles, andbeing embedded in the concrete material, whereby said ribs anchor thetiles to the concrete material, and they serve to space the reinforcingbars D with respect to the upper surface of the tiles, so that theconcrete material will flow into the spaces intervening the metal barsand the upper surfaces of the slabs or tiles. As shown in Figure 8, thefloor-slab is reinforced by a beam or girder L, the latter being formedof concrete, and said beam being integral with the slab. The girder isfaced by flat slabs or tiles B having the ribs embedded in the concretematerial as hereinbefore described.

Having thus fully described the invention, what I claim as new anddesire to secure by Letters Patent is:

A masonry floor comprising concrete, metal rods embedded in theconcrete, and tile slabs on the under surface on the floor, said tileslabs being provided with longitudinal ribs and said ribs extendingupwardly into the concrete, said metal rods resting upon the ribs andspaced thereby from the slabs; said spaces between the slabs and therods being filled with concrete which encases the rods.

In testimony whereof I have hereto signed my name this 12th day ofApril, 1926.

KARL R. SCHUSTER.

